Best Laser Bed Working Table for Engravers [2023 Guide]

In recent years, engraving has started to become more popular. Instead of requiring a steady hand or expensive equipment, modern technology has made it more accessible. All you need is an engraving machine and the right computer software. Then you can convert any image into an engraving or cutting. You can even create whole batches of the same engraving for promotions or craft fairs.

That said, engraving machines are no joke. They use powerful lasers to do their job, and those lasers can damage your working surface. For example, suppose you put the object you’re engraving in the wrong spot. If you’ve got a wood table and you actuate your laser, it would burn the table. The same is true any time you’re using the engraver for cutting. A specially designed table can fix the problem.

Today, we’ll be reviewing four of the best laser bed working tables for engravers. No time to read the entire set of reviews? Here are the bare basics:

• The Ortur Laser Engraving Platform is a solid metal platform with a right-angle guide to hold whatever you’re engraving.
• The SCULPFUN Honeycomb Working Table is a smaller honeycomb-style platform that offers superb ventilation.
• The xTool Honeycomb Working Table is a large platform with an iron honeycomb that can stand up to powerful lasers.
• The DEWALLIE Honeycomb Laser Bed comes with a brushed aluminum base that provides superb heat dispersal.

Of course, those are just the bare basics. To really make a fair comparison, we’ll have to dig a lot deeper. Let’s dig in, and see what we find!

Ortur Laser Engraving Platform

Key features:

• Solid aluminum panel.
• 400mm x 382mm working area.
• Sliding guide with right-angle bracket.

Ortur is a well-known manufacturer in the laser engraving market. Not long ago, we reviewed the Ortur Laser Master S2. It impressed us with its large working area, and its laser is adjustable between 4,500 and 5,500mW.

The Ortur Laser Engraving Platform is a great companion not just for the Laser Master S2 but for many engravers. It measures 17.64 inches long, 15.75 inches wide, and 0.47-inch tall. This translates to a working area of 400mm x 382mm. It’s crafted from black aluminum, which is nice and lightweight. At only 3.85 pounds, it’s easy to pick up and put away at the end of the day. That said, if you need a larger working surface, it’s easy to create one. The ends of the platform can lock together to extend it to 800mm or more.

The platform has a grooved design. Most of the surface is actually fairly low, but there’s a series of raised ridges that support whatever you’re engraving. These ridges have sharp, 90-degree angles instead of being sloped. Combined with the black finish, this prevents the laser from reflecting off at an angle that could pose a hazard.

Speaking of angles, the Ortur platform comes with a right-angle bracket that attaches to the surface. It attaches to a longer bar that can be moved from side to side. This bar secures with a pair of thumb screws that can tightened or loosened as needed for adjustment. There’s a similar set of screws on the bracket to allow it to move along the bar. This is great for batch work, since you can ensure that each piece sits in the same spot while you’re working. However, the screws on the right-angle bracket are a bit tall, and could interfere with a low-hanging laser module.

What we liked:

• Great for working on wooden surfaces.
• Modular, extendable design.
• Right-angle bracket is great for batch work.
• Large working area.

What we didn’t like:

• Solid design is less than ideal for smoke dispersal.
• Bracket set screws could block your laser module.

SCULPFUN Honeycomb Working Table

Key features:

• Honeycomb-style aluminum panel.
• 350mm x 350mm working area.
• Reflective bottom panel for easier cutting.

The SCULPFUN Honeycomb Working Table is a little bit larger. It has a 400mm x 400mm aluminum frame, and measures 22mm thick. However, the actual working area is smaller, at only 350mm x 350mm. That’s because the frame is fairly thick, while the working area is a lightweight honeycomb-style lattice. This design isn’t just meant to reduce weight. The lattice is designed to allow air to flow through, which is great for wood burning under a vent hood.

The front and left sides of the frame are marked with a pair of millimeter scales. They’re marked in high-contrast white paint, which makes them very easy to read. There’s also a set of black rubber bumpers that you can slip over the corners. That way, you won’t hurt yourself accidentally by bumping your hand into the platform.

Along with the main platform, the package includes a reflective aluminum bottom panel. This panel measures 400mm x 400mm, and the platform secures to the top of it with a set of velcro pads. The pads leave a gap of 2mm around the edges so air can flow under the lattice. The cool thing about this base is that it’s reflective. Not only does it protect your working surface, but it makes it easy to see whether the laser is cutting effectively.

What we liked:

• Great choice for cutting.
• Excellent air flow.
• Protective rubber bumpers on the corners.
• Velcro pads keep the bottom plate perfectly positioned.

What we didn’t like:

• Small working area.
• Engineering quality is only so-so.

xTool Honeycomb Working Table

Key features:

• Iron and aluminum honeycomb-style panel.
• 431mm x 431mm working area.
• Reflective bottom panel for easier cutting.

The xTool Honeycomb Working Table has a black aluminum frame that surrounds an inner honeycomb. The working area is very large, at 431mm x 431mm, and there are white scales on the left and right. The markings are high-contrast and easy to read, but they’re in inches. Normally I appreciate standard US units, but almost all engravers and engraving software work in millimeters. This can make placement a bit difficult depending on your requirements.

The honeycomb surface itself is made of iron rather than aluminum. This makes it perfect for use with high-powered lasers that are designed to cut metal. The steel is simply more resilient, and can get hotter than aluminum without sustaining damage. It also costs more than aluminum, but you get what you pay for.

Venting is excellent, with a 2mm gap under the base, and at 22mm, the platform isn’t overly high. It also has clear silicone bumpers for the corners, to keep you from stabbing yourself. The aluminum bottom plate measures 500mm to a side, more than large enough for the whole unit. And it sports a set of magnetic mounts that keep the platform and base plate locked into alignment.

xTool is another company that’s known for good quality engraving equipment. We recently reviewed the xTool D1 Pro, and we were pretty impressed. It sports a powerful 10- or 20-watt laser, and can engrave as quickly as 24,000mm per minute.

What we liked:

• Iron honeycomb is perfect for cutting metals.
• Very large working area.
• Magnetic mounts for base.
• Protective silicone corner bumpers.

What we didn’t like:

• Working area scales are in inches.
• A little bit pricey.

DEWALLIE Honeycomb Laser Bed

Key features:

• Aluminum honeycomb-style panel.
• 400mm x 400mm working area.
• Brushed aluminum bottom plate.
• Comes in five other sizes.

The DEWALLIE Honeycomb Laser Bed is made from a sturdy black aluminum, both across the frame and the honeycomb lattice. It’s available in six sizes, ranging from a tiny 300mm x 200mm to a large 500mm x 500mm. We reviewed the 400mm x 400mm version.

All versions have a white millimeter scale on the front and back parts of the frame. And the platform comes with a set of black rubber bumpers to protect the corners. Our only major complaint was the factory coating on the aluminum honeycomb. It can come off when it’s hot, and can stain the back side of your working material.

The base plate is made from brushed aluminum, and doesn’t actually affix to the platform. Because it’s brushed, it also doesn’t reflect as much light as a polished surface. But it does do a better job of heat absorption and dispersal.

What we liked:

• Available in six sizes.
• Excellent smoke and heat dispersal.
• Rubber bumpers protect your hands.
• Large working area.

What we didn’t like:

• Frame does not affix to the base.
• Finish on the honeycomb can stain whatever you’re working on.

Final Verdict

All four of these platforms do a good job of supporting your engraver and protecting your working surface. But which one is the ideal choice for your needs? Let’s recap what we’ve learned about each one.

We began with the Ortur Laser Engraving Platform. This platform’s flat, grooved design makes it unique in that there’s no honeycomb structure. On the one hand, this makes it thinner overall than most of the platforms. On the other hand, this makes it less suitable for woodburning, since the smoke doesn’t disperse as easily. That said, the aluminum does an excellent job of heat dispersal. And with the right-angle bracket, batch work is a breeze.

Second on our list was the SCULPFUN Honeycomb Working Table. This platform is designed not just for engraving but also for wood burning and cutting. The honeycomb and raised platform allow plenty of air flow for dispersing wood burning smoke. Meanwhile, the reflective bottom panel makes it easy to see when your laser has cut through the working material.

Third, we looked at the xTool Honeycomb Working Table. This table is similar to the SCULPFUN table in terms of general design. It’s a bit more expensive, but it’s also bigger and wider. The magnetic attachments to the base plate are very secure. And the iron honeycomb platform is perfect for etching and cutting metals on top of.

We finished up by reviewing the DEWALLIE Honeycomb Laser Bed. This is a bit of an oddball because it comes in so many sizes. It can be tiny, huge, or anything in-between, depending on your needs. That said, it does a great job of dispersing smoke and especially heat. It’s definitely the best choice if you need a platform with an unusual size.